Southampton have not been convincing in pre-season and all the signs are that Mark Hughes still does not know his best team or formation. Burnley have to contend with their Europa League commitments which may hamper them and this may be an unusually open game for the two teams.
West Ham have enjoyed one of the better transfer windows in their recent history and look to have much more quality in their squad now. That said, it will take time to bed the players in and Liverpool will look to make a fast start and should rack up three points from this opener at Anfield.
Business as usual for Man City if the Community Shield is anything to go by and they will look to make another fast start to the Premier League just as they did last season. Arsenal are typically strong at home but they may not be at the races immediately which may favour the champions.
Everton have been making some bold moves in the transfer market but their performances - especially defensively - have been poor in pre-season. Going forward however they have plenty of quality and attacking threat so expect both teams to score in this opener with newly-promoted Wolves.
These two teams look relatively well matched coming into this opener and both may consider it a game that is winnable on paper. There have been very few goals in the last six meetings between these two teams and this one could well follow suit.
Newcastle ended last season in strong form at home but Rafa will need to get his men fired back up for this difficult opening match. They may catch Spurs at a good time however as their preparations have been hampered so goals may be at a premium in this one.
Huddersfield picked up some good results at the end of last season including a draw at Chelsea as they used a back five. They will likely go with the same here, and employ the same tactics as they try and frustrate this disjointed Chelsea team who are likely to be short on players and sharpness.
There is plenty of excitement around Fulham and their return to the Premier League but it may take their relatively new-look team some time to settle. Palace are well-drilled and have been in excellent form in pre-season and may hand a reality check to Jokanovic's side in this opener.
Cardiff have strengthened their squad but they still look short on quality to compete every week in the Premier League. Bournemouth will provide them with a tough early test and for all their endeavour, it is hard to see Warnock's men returning to Wales with anything from this match.
So much depends on what team United and Jose Mourinho field for this match as they have been heavily affected in pre-season and have struggled badly. Leicester have also been impacted to a lesser degree, but they will fancy their chances of frustrating United for long spells.
The Premier League is becoming ever more competitive and the dogfight to avoid relegation is no exception. That scrap for survival is almost like a mini-league within the division that lies at the zenith of English football.
The 2018-19 Premier League season is almost underway, which means that the time is now for picking relegation candidates and Championship contenders, and when choosing a short list of candidates to lift the trophy at the end of the season, avoiding teams that are due to regress is an important step.
Newcastle top the Premier League distance table with no local derbies to contend. Together with Cardiff, they are the most isolated team in the Premier League, with the shortest trip for both sets of fans being 116 miles (Burnley and Wolves respectively).
We've logged every line-up in the 2017-18 season for the top six tiers of English football to see which teams tend to have a fairly settled starting XI and who sees frequent personnel changes. This page will be updated regularly as the season progresses.
Sport News 24/7Enter your email to receive our newsletter on all things sport, data and analysis!
